Laparoscopic surgery is a popular alternative to open surgery due to the considerable reduction of recovery time, pain and complications. However, limited access to the operating field, indirect vision, and operating rooms (OR) originally built for open surgery conspire to make the surgeon's work more difficult and inefficient. The goal of the proposed work is to provide a smart OR system to improve safety and procedural success while reducing cost. To achieve this goal, the team will focus on: a smart trocar prototype that automatically recognizes the laparoscopic instruments and allows the accurate reconstruction of the time line in any minimally invasive surgery; and, a smart trocar that provides an accurate 3D localization of the tip of the laparoscopic instruments.
The proposed technology will provide essential information to improve the management of any minimally invasive procedure, reduce cost, and improve performance. In addition, the proposed technology will dramatically advance the technology of the OR by setting up a new REal Time Interactive Navigation Assistance (RETINA) for Surgery that provides robust directions to improve safety. Real time parallel computing, robust computer vision and finite element simulation are the main three complementary building blocks of this OR system. Accurate assessment of the surgeon & smart OR interaction by surgical training experts and close collaboration with industry will provide guidance to the agile development of the OR service.
